The new aspects of the anticorrosive ZnO@SiO2 core–shell NPs in stabilizing of the electrolytic Ni bath and the Ni coating structure; electrochemical behavior of the resulting nano-composite coatings

Abstract

The pure phase of the ZnO nanoparticles (NPs) as anticorrosive pigments was synthesized by the sonication method. The surfaces of the sono-synthesized nanoparticles were covered with the protective silica layer. The durability of the coated and uncoated ZnO NPs in the used electrolytic Ni bath was determined by flame atomic absorption spectrometry. In the present research the multicomponent Ni bath as the complex medium was replaced by the simple one. The used nickel-plating bath was just composed of the Ni salts (as the sources of the Ni2+ ions) to better clarify the influence of the presence of the ZnO@SiO2 core–shell NPs on the stability of the medium. The effect of ZnO@SiO2 NPs incorporation on the morphology of the solid electroformed Ni deposit was studied by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Furthermore, the influence of the co-deposited particles in the Ni matrix on the corrosion resistance of the Ni coating was evaluated by the electrochemical methods including linear polarization resistance (LPR) and Tafel extrapolation.